The First

Chapter 69

Happy little jitterbugs zipped up and down Alexa's arms. Words couldn't express the weight Ross had lifted from her. While on the phone he'd given her small details about the horrid battle atop the Philomath fire station. How he'd survived and the sacrifice Savannah made. What excited her the most had to do with their precious cargo. They had a pureblood tri-allele child and the afterbirth. A billion and one questions could be answered within a couple of hours. She'd have stem cells, DNA, RNA, and the most precious DNA only a mother can carry, mitochondrial DNA. Now they had a chance to save all pregnant women who wanted to carry their babies to term.

The girls had bounced back surprisingly well. Ellie had gone from near catatonia to an attentive midwife. A mitochondrial DNA trait she'd probably inherited from her own-very prolific-child-bearing mother. Teagan's pregnancy had tripled in speed and so had her anxiety. If mom didn't stop in to see her every fifteen minutes, the poor girl would blow a gasket. Alexa figured she'd hit the last couple days of the third trimester in the past few hours since Ross left. Once they arrived with the specimen she could finally work out a reversal and calm the Teagan leviathan.

What if it was too late for Teagan? She couldn't think about what if's. Now she had to think in absolutes.

"Alexa ... please play grunge music from the early nineteen-nineties?"

Bemused by Ellie's little quips, Alexa scowled. "It wasn't funny the first time and that fact hasn't changed, Elenore."

Ellie humphed. "Yes, it is." She then slunk back into the bedroom to attend to her nursing duties.

"I said, crushed ice!" Teagan half screamed, half cried.

"Bitch. Get your fat ass out of bed and get it yourself."

Okay. Maybe she's not that great of a midwife. Alexa filled a large cup with crushed ice and handed it to Ellie as she rushed back into the room.

"Thanks." Ellie swiped the new glass and tossed the other into the sink.

Before Alexa went back to work, she loaded the dishes into the dishwasher. Force of habit. Could Ellie use more dishes? How hard is it to use the same dish once or twice?

An old beat up, blue pickup drove over the curb and onto the lawn. Through the kitchen window, she watched Ross climb out of the driver's side. Several tingles raced through her body. She wasn't sure if it was because of the wonderful night she'd had with him or the red-topped cooler he'd retrieved from the back.

Neither reason mattered much as a behemoth of a man exited the vehicle. His camo fatigues stuck to him like wet paper. Swaddled in a blue blanket in the crook of his left arm lay the baby Trill.

Alexa unlocked and opened the front door. A blood-soaked bandage clung to Ross's shoulder. Tattered pieces of shirt stuck to his stomach and chest from sweat or dried blood. He set the cooler at her feet and immediately embraced her. She hadn't expected the affection.

"You're a wreck." She gazed into his tired eyes. It had not occurred to her that after one night together she would have any feelings for this man. At least she hadn't intended to. But he kept amazing her. If this worked and saved her daughter, even if he didn't reciprocate her feelings, it had all been worth it.

Ross kissed her forehead. Nothing needed to be said.

She opened the cooler and saw the perfectly intact placenta and umbilical cord.

"And?" Ross asked.

"This should do it. The umbilical cord blood will have the DNA I need. But the placenta ... it can open a door of unimaginable opportunity."

The giant snuck up behind them. He ducked to enter the house. Lucky she had vaulted ceilings or he'd bash his head on everything.

"This is Gavin. Gavin, meet Dr. Alexa Mason." Ross patted the big guy on the shoulder.

He nodded and smiled. "It's nice to meet you, ma'am."

She smiled back. "Call me, Alexa. Has it shown any aggression?"

"Only aggressively sucking on my finger." Gavin lowered the baby.

Alexa removed the fold of the blanket from the Trills face. "She's beautiful." With the back of her hand, she gently touched one of its pink cheeks. "Her skin doesn't feel like the others. It's almost as if she's already evolved."

Ross had his hand pressed against his shoulder. "You should have seen her mom. Do you think she could have had sex with a human?"

"Doubtful. Though I suppose it's possible. I won't know for sure until I can check her DNA."

Extraction of stem cells from a placenta was still in its infancy and she didn't have all the equipment she needed. She'd have to make due, though time wasn't on her side. Teagan's baby could start gouging, biting, and ripping its way to freedom at any moment.

"Could you keep an eye on her, Gavin?"

"Yes, ma'am. I'll look over the baby."

"Thank you. Tell me if there's any change at all. It doesn't matter how small."

"Yes, ma'am." Gavin took the baby into the living room and sat on the couch.

Alexa turned to Ross. "You go get cleaned up. I'll get to work on this." She picked up the cooler and headed for the lab.

Ross opened the door for her. "You sure you don't need my help?"

On her tiptoes, she kissed Ross on his thick jawline. "Take care of yourself. I've got this. It's going to be a long day."

Thanks for reading. Please vote and comment if you would.

Wow! I can taste the ending.